Who Would Have Been "Your Guy" Leading Up To The 1994 Draft

[mbradleyc]

Your Milwaukee Bucks at the end of the 93-94 season:

00 Anthony Avent PF 6-9 235 October 18, 1969 1 Seton Hall University
42 Vin Baker C 6-11 232 November 23, 1971 R University of Hartford
17 Jon Barry SG 6-4 195 July 25, 1969 1 Georgia Institute of Technology
40 Frank Brickowski C 6-9 240 August 14, 1959 9 Pennsylvania State University
00 Anthony Cook PF 6-9 205 March 19, 1967 2 University of Arizona
40 Joe Courtney PF 6-8 235 October 17, 1969 1 University of Southern Mississippi
10 Todd Day SG 6-6 188 January 7, 1970 1 University of Arkansas
30 Blue Edwards SF 6-4 200 October 31, 1965 4 East Carolina University
44 Greg Foster PF 6-11 240 October 3, 1968 3 University of Texas at El Paso
43 Mike Gminski C 6-11 250 August 3, 1959 13 Duke University
54 Brad Lohaus PF 6-11 230 September 29, 1964 6 University of Iowa
11 Lee Mayberry PG 6-1 172 June 12, 1970 1 University of Arkansas
5 Eric Murdock PG 6-1 190 June 14, 1968 2 Providence College
3 Ken Norman SF 6-8 215 September 5, 1964 6 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
24 Danny Schayes C 6-11 235 May 10, 1959 12 Syracuse University
20 Derek Strong PF 6-8 220 February 9, 1968 2 Xavier University

They had two young PG's in Murdock and Mayberry, but the SF's were Norman and Edwards. They needed scoring in the worst way. Robinson was the consensus best player available.

By that time the Bucks had fallen off the cliff. Nelson was long gone, driven away by Kohl, Dunleavy was coach. Sad, depressing days. I had just moved to San Antonio and started going to Spurs games.

Bummer man! Why'd you have to bring this up?

[Flap Jackson]

My dad and I bring this up once a year. The conclusion is that he was right about the player, but in the end it was moot.

I went Big Dog because my early teen years basketball self, loved his scoring. My dad wanted Grant Hill, because well ... because he knew better.

Hill's career was derailed by injury, but I don't think anyone can reasonably question his smarts on the court and his character. Hill left his team before it was obvious that his ankles were going to take many years to recover. Big Dog did not leave his team.

Then there is Kidd. The thing about Kidd was he was prone to get into trouble off the court and only grew up when he had a change of scenery with a team that did not draft him. His best years were post-Mavs.

Kidd was the best player, Hill probably would have been among the elite (like Kidd was), but Glenn Robinson was productive as a Buck and stayed with them past his rookie contract. In the end, its moot.

[emunney]

Big dog enters the league now, he's a 4 and a great one.

[SkilesTheLimit]

In my mind, as soon as the ping pong balls fell our way, I said "We got Big Dog!" As a 12 year old, there was nobody else even on my radar knowing the stats that Dog put up at Purdue.

To this day, I have fond memories of Big Dog in a Bucks uniform. He was as money as it gets with his mid-range jumper.

He had flaws in his game, no doubt, but he and Sam I Am go neck and neck as my most favorite Bucks in my lifetime.

[rilamann]

I was reluctantly on the Big Dog hype train because of the way Grant Hill shut him down in the NCAA's that year. Just gave me a bad feeling about things.

That said, based on where things stood in June 1994, you had to take Robinson #1 overall. You just had to.

Yeah,I was at the draft party at the BC and I think there might have been a riot had we taken anyone other than Big Dog with that #1 pick.I was 14 at the time and it was before the internet went mainstream obviously so I didn't do any homework,I was all about the hype.

And while Dog had a very solid career I remember prior to draft a lot of respected people in the world of basketball were saying he had Magic/Bird/MJ type potential and was a can't miss superstar.Pretty early into his rookie year I realized he was good but not as good as they had hyped him up to be and I had to come terms with the fact we probably weren't going to win a championship as soon as I had thought...lol.

[RandyBreuer]

I thought Big Dog was the right pick at the time but obviously a huge mistake passing on Kidd, a la passing on Paul for Bogut.

[HKPackFan]

Big Dog sure seemed like the consensus #1 Pick when I think back to that lottery. I just remember the commentator asking our coach right off the bat saying, "It's big Dog right?"

[FlagsFlyForever]

Dog was the best college player I had seen up to that point in my young life. The guy scored 30.3 ppg @ .578 TS as a junior. I remember going to games with my dad at the old Field House, and watching him and Finley go at it. He was my #1 guy pretty easily. Absolutely effortless scorer in college. Should have been a better pro.

I saw a game at the Field House where Big Dog had 40+ and Finley had 30+. I think Big Dog was 19/19 from the line.

Wish I could find that box score somewhere.

Finley had 33 points, 10 steals. Big Dog had 42 points and was 14/14 from the free throw line. UW led by 5 with under a minute in regulation but Purdue wound up winning 90-87 in double overtime.

[Tfence92]

Dog was the best college player I had seen up to that point in my young life. The guy scored 30.3 ppg @ .578 TS as a junior. I remember going to games with my dad at the old Field House, and watching him and Finley go at it. He was my #1 guy pretty easily. Absolutely effortless scorer in college. Should have been a better pro.

I saw a game at the Field House where Big Dog had 40+ and Finley had 30+. I think Big Dog was 19/19 from the line.

Wish I could find that box score somewhere.

Finley had 33 points, 10 steals. Big Dog had 42 points and was 14/14 from the free throw line. UW led by 5 with under a minute in regulation but Purdue wound up winning 90-87 in double overtime.

WOW!:

[th87]

I thought Big Dog was the right pick at the time but obviously a huge mistake passing on Kidd, a la passing on Paul for Bogut.

Disagree. Kidd didn't accomplish anything for the team that drafted him.

I wonder how Big Dog would've done had we had good developmental coaches, a functional front office, and no Kohl meddling.

[DingleJerry]

Big dog enters the league now, he's a 4 and a great one.

I've made the same point throughout his career. If he had been 3 inches taller and able to play PF in that era he would have been a superstar instead of just a star 3. His midrange and post up jumpers were amazing. Wasn't quick enough to guard 3s on D, not quick enough to beat guys off the dribble on the wing, not a quite a good enough 3pt shooter. In this era he could step right in as a PF and be one of the best.

When it comes down to it I think he was one of the more underappreciated Bucks. Yes he didn't live up to the hype but he was also a consistent 20 pt scorer his whole time here, yet all anyone says about it him is he didn't live up to the hype. But he was big in lifting them from depths they were into being respectable and then was a key player in almost making the finals, would have if the refs didn't screw them vs Philly. And they would have given the Lakers a challenge in the Finals. Also, it didn't really get reported but he had a chronic ankle/foot problems his whole career, which probably didn't help his quickness.

At the time though, taking him was a no-brainer. There was no other choice.

[Ruzious]

Ah, the Voshon Leonard draft. I was a big Grant Hill guy, so he would have been my pick. But I wasn't very disappointed with the pick - Robinson was a GREAT college player - actually a very different type of player that he became in the NBA. Hill also became a different type of player in the NBA - more of a scorer than he was at Duke. I thought he was basically a Pippen clone at Duke.

[BobbyLight]

I was all of 14 at the time, but I remember the idea was that we won the lottery when there was a clear, no doubt, consensus #1 pick.

The same way you had to take LeBron first was the same way you had to take Big Dog first in 1994. He was THE undisputed number 1 pick at the time.

Remember I am saying this in relation to the feeling prior to the draft. The hindsight pick would have to be Kidd, he was the best of those three, but obviously Hill had a ton of years stolen from him.

[ReasonablySober]

Back then Robinson was the easy choice. If that draft was held today I'd be taking Hill 1st.

[Ron Swanson]

Back then Robinson was the easy choice. If that draft was held today I'd be taking Hill 1st.

Pretty much how I feel. If that draft were held in today's NBA and not knowing how each guy would turn out, I would probably be all aboard the Grant Hill train for the #1 pick, due to the versatility and athleticism.

Back in 94' though, you had to take Big Dog. It would've been like the Sonics taking Al Horford over Kevin Durant or the Heat taking Mayo over Michael Beasley. You just couldn't be the team that passed on a 30 PPG college scorer, especially considering it was a need pick as well.

[Treebeard]

I always like Hill better, but the ankles went south way too soon.

All the same, it would have been real hard to defend taking Hill over Big Dog back then.

[KidA24]

Dog was the best college player I had seen up to that point in my young life. The guy scored 30.3 ppg @ .578 TS as a junior. I remember going to games with my dad at the old Field House, and watching him and Finley go at it. He was my #1 guy pretty easily. Absolutely effortless scorer in college. Should have been a better pro.

I saw a game at the Field House where Big Dog had 40+ and Finley had 30+. I think Big Dog was 19/19 from the line.

Wish I could find that box score somewhere.

The game was Sat, Feb 13, 1993.

I was there, I still have my ticket stub in a box. That game was ridiculous.
I can't find the box score anywhere online (not even google's newspaper archives).

The best I could find? A Michael Hunt article:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19940115&id=9atRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_hIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6967,3373507&hl=en

Muahaha! Google comes through again!

Page C5:

https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19930214&id=TKIaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qywEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1416,3871477&hl=en

[MadBlueEdwards]

Without any hindsight factored in, I'd take Big Dog 10 times out of 10.

[Perishable517]

Your Milwaukee Bucks at the end of the 93-94 season:

00 Anthony Avent PF 6-9 235 October 18, 1969 1 Seton Hall University
42 Vin Baker C 6-11 232 November 23, 1971 R University of Hartford
17 Jon Barry SG 6-4 195 July 25, 1969 1 Georgia Institute of Technology
40 Frank Brickowski C 6-9 240 August 14, 1959 9 Pennsylvania State University
00 Anthony Cook PF 6-9 205 March 19, 1967 2 University of Arizona
40 Joe Courtney PF 6-8 235 October 17, 1969 1 University of Southern Mississippi
10 Todd Day SG 6-6 188 January 7, 1970 1 University of Arkansas
30 Blue Edwards SF 6-4 200 October 31, 1965 4 East Carolina University
44 Greg Foster PF 6-11 240 October 3, 1968 3 University of Texas at El Paso
43 Mike Gminski C 6-11 250 August 3, 1959 13 Duke University
54 Brad Lohaus PF 6-11 230 September 29, 1964 6 University of Iowa
11 Lee Mayberry PG 6-1 172 June 12, 1970 1 University of Arkansas
5 Eric Murdock PG 6-1 190 June 14, 1968 2 Providence College
3 Ken Norman SF 6-8 215 September 5, 1964 6 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
24 Danny Schayes C 6-11 235 May 10, 1959 12 Syracuse University
20 Derek Strong PF 6-8 220 February 9, 1968 2 Xavier University

They had two young PG's in Murdock and Mayberry, but the SF's were Norman and Edwards. They needed scoring in the worst way. Robinson was the consensus best player available.

By that time the Bucks had fallen off the cliff. Nelson was long gone, driven away by Kohl, Dunleavy was coach. Sad, depressing days. I had just moved to San Antonio and started going to Spurs games.

Bummer man! Why'd you have to bring this up?

I was for the Dog. He did what the Bucks (see above) needed. He scored. He scored 20 a game from the get go which is what all the talking heads said at that time. He was money.

[xTitan]

for me it was easily Grant Hill, saw a 6'8" guy who could play the point, raise the level of everyone around him and still score. I really like Kidd quite a bit but he was not a very good shooter at that time.